Chennai, Feb. 10: A WhatsApp joke on them did the rounds, the high court wanted to know if they were being held against their wishes and a chosen few were paraded in front of the media to send the message that there were "no restrictions" on them.
The 120-odd AIADMK legislators who have been kept in a beach resort by the V.K. Sasikala camp took centre-stage in the unfolding political drama in Tamil Nadu today, a day after two of the legislators whose support the chief minister-elect has claimed switched to the group of deposed chief minister O. Panneerselvam.
Late tonight, the Raj Bhavan denied reports that governor Vidyasagar Rao had informed the Centre that he would wait for the Supreme Court verdict in the wealth case before considering Sasikala's claim to form the government.
A widely circulated WhatsApp joke said the owner of the Golden Bay beach resort at Kuvathur, 90km from Chennai, could stake claim to form the government as he had more than 120 MLAs in his custody.
Madras High Court asked the state government to file a status report after a habeas corpus petition filed by a relative of one of the MLAs alleged that the legislators were being held against their will.
The court asked police to investigate the complaint. A state government lawyer said most of the MLAs were in the resort but added that they were there on their own volition.
Governor Rao, who reached Chennai yesterday and met Sasikala and Panneerselvam, asked the director-general of police and the commissioner about the MLAs.
Against such a backdrop, Sasikala's managers got some of the MLAs to step out of the resort and talk to local TV channels. The legislators asserted that they were not being held captive.
"There are no restrictions on us. We are in touch with our families. Just because we are steadfastly backing Chinnamma, the OPS camp is spreading the lie that we are being held against our will," said Jayanthi Padmanabhan, one of the MLAs.
In the evening, senior ministers met the MLAs in the resort at Sasikala's behest and assured them that their stay would end soon "with good news".
AIADMK spokesperson C.R. Saraswathi said the MLAs had switched off their cellphones after getting "threat" calls from their constituencies asking them to support Panneerselvam. "Supporters of OPS put up the mobile numbers of the MLAs on social media platforms, which compelled them to switch off their phones after they received threats," she said.
The Panneerselvam camp struck back with one of its MLAs, V. Shanmuganathan, filing a police complaint in Chennai against Sasikala and minister Palanichamy accusing them of holding him against his will and making him vote for her in the party meeting where she was elected the general secretary. Yesterday, Shanmuganathan had jumped from a bus in which he was being taken to the "safe place".
Shanmuganathan said all the MLAs had been asked to sign blank papers at the meeting. Another MLA close to Panneerselvam, Aarukutti, said the pro-Sasikala legislators were "safe and secure" in the resort but would not be able to return to their constituencies as voters and party cadres were "furious" at them.
Sasikala expelled E. Madhusudhanan, the presidium chairman who has switched to the Panneerselvam faction, from the party. He was replaced by former minister K.A. Sengottaiyan.
The AIADMK has not expelled Panneerselvam and the MLAs who are backing him as that would make them immune to the anti-defection law.
'No urgency'
The Supreme Court today refused to order an urgent hearing on a PIL seeking a stay on the possible swearing-in of Sasikala as chief minister.
"There is no urgency. The matter would come in the normal course," a bench of Chief Justice J.S. Khehar and Justices N.V. Ramana and D.Y. Chandrachud said while refusing to entertain the plea of counsel G.S. Mani, appearing for the Tamil Nadu-based NGO Satta Panchayat Iyakkam.
The Supreme Court will next week give the verdict in an assets case in which Sasikala is an accused.
